Education

A panel of Jefferson County leaders including Third District Congressman John Yarmuth and Jefferson County Public Schools superintendent Donna Hargens will convene this month to discuss ways the community can reduce gun violence.

St. Matthew's Episcopal Church recently passed a resolution urging an end to the sale of semi-automatic weapons and urging support of adequate funding for mental health.

“We don’t intend this to be political, though obviously it’s a political issue but our intent is this is a moral issue,” says Bob Nesmith, the church’s event coordinator.

A majority of Kentucky’s priority schools—formerly known as persistently low-achieving—have not made adequate progress for turning around student achievement, according to a report presented to the Kentucky Board of Education this week. And Jefferson County is being singled out.

Of the 41 schools that have been deemed priority schools only 18 have made acceptable progress, said the education department's Susan Allred.

The University of Kentucky is establishing a partnership with two non-profit foundations to establish the National Center for Innovation in Education. With a focus on college and career readiness, the center will assist states in implementing the Common Core standards and helping students learn on a deeper level.    

Eastern Kentucky University's president is warning of campus layoffs as the school prepares to reallocate 10 percent of its budget.

In an email sent this week to faculty and staff on the Richmond campus, EKU President Doug Whitlock did not specify how many jobs would be cut or when. He said there's no way the budget reallocation can be made without a workforce reduction.

Whitlock promised that the process of deciding on layoffs will be done in a "fair and humane" way.